Cardan to be checked and vent valve retrofitted on a total of 440,000 motorcycles

lkraus said:

BMW does not make all the parts, but they choose to put them on their products. To me, that is BMW saying "This component meets BMW standards." When the part subsequently proves faulty, it means that BMW's standards are lacking. It is not enough for the component manufacturer's QC to say these are good enough. It's up to BMW to test the components and verify that BMW's standards are being met before the parts get to the customer and it is BMW that is responsible to the purchaser of their vehicle when those components do not measure up.

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It is standard practice for manufacturers sourcing parts from vendors to "Qualify" said vendors before they begin to purchase parts for use in their end products.

It would appear that BMW has issues with its Vendor Qualification Program.

bigjohnsd said:

It is standard practice for manufacturers sourcing parts from vendors to "Qualify" said vendors before they begin to purchase parts for use in their end products.

It would appear that BMW has issues with its Vendor Qualification Program.

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+1

bigjohnsd said:

It is standard practice for manufacturers sourcing parts from vendors to "Qualify" said vendors before they begin to purchase parts for use in their end products.

It would appear that BMW has issues with its Vendor Qualification Program.

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It's shocking how often a manufacturer will change vendors without testing the quality of the new product.
In the industry I was in, high end bicycle manufacturing, it was not unusual to use a different vendor for production bits and pieces (nuts/bolts) than was used throughout the testing and preproduction process.
It was rare that this would cause a problem, but it did once in a while.

This video illustrates the test that dealers are to administer and the tools used.

https://youtu.be/zdBjdxZwJ98

While not a recall but rather a service campaign one might suspect that it is a pre-emptive move by BMW to avoid a recall given the obvious safety implications of the worst case scenarios.

I haven't seen a mention of this here so FWIW the site afmb.bike (l'association francophone des motos BMW (an organization without ties to BMW)) BMW has officially expanded the coverage of the campaign to embrace other models sharing the same bad design.



I don't know by how much this increases the original number of 440,000 motorcycles but I would think that it's a substantial increase.

My recent Experience

Earlier this week I took my 2019 R1250GS (18,646 miles on it) to my local dealer to have the drive train checked/tested and the rubber vent installed in advance prep for a 1500+ mile ride (that was planned for this weekend). Since I've never used a power washer or ridden thru water crossings, or even rarely used a hose to gently rinse soap off the rear wheel, I figured that my GS would easily pass the BMW "spinning wheel" vibration/stress test and I'd get the vent installed and be on my way back home in about a couple of hours. WRONG!! My bike failed the "spinning wheel vibration test" and now still sits up on a lift at the dealer, awaiting parts (which are on order). I was shocked! Here are some contributing factors to my situation: 1) Upon inspection the drive shaft was not corroded or rusted or wet with any moisture. 2) The rear spline was coated not with any moly lube, but instead was coated with gray anti-seize compound. (The service tech told me, "Someone has put anti-seize on your spline; it's supposed to be lubed with a moly lube.") I asked him if that was a mistake made at the factory and he would not reply, except that "someone" put anti-seize in there.

I asked the tech how "bad" was the test result. His reply was that he just follows the directions for running the test and reports the results as either a "red X" or a "green check mark" as indicated by the computer. He told me he didn't know exactly what the test measured or how far mine was off specs. He just offered that their direction is to replace the drive shaft if it doesn't pass the test.

A friend of mine (2020 GSA owner) mentioned to me that the replacement drive shaft has a different part number, suggesting that maybe BMW may have corrected a subtle design flaw in the original driveshafts. This may be corroborated by what the tech told me when I asked him whether they would do the same "spinning wheel vibration" test on the new replacement shafts they install. He said "no" ... they install new shafts and aren't required to test them after installation.

I'm wondering now if the reason my GS failed the test is because the wrong "lubricant" (anti-seize compound) was applied (by "someone") on the rear splines instead of the proper lubricant. Or if my GS had an original driveshaft with a slight flaw/imperfection that has since been corrected in the replacement shafts.

Anyone encounter the same situation? Any thoughts on this??

BTW, here's pic of my GS with the test set up: https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52426212066_159a4b8ac0_n.jpg

There is a speculation over on ADVRider and elsewhere that there are in fact two issues, 1) defective driveshafts and 2) installation of the duckbill valve, being addressed in the current "service campaign" with nothing official being said about the former by BMW. The speculation is that the test jig is really all about the defective driveshafts.

Hi RadioFlyer,
In your posts 09-28-2022, 08:26 PM and 09-13-2022, 09:09 PM you published large extracts and pictures from this article with copyright :
https://afmb.bike/en/
It would be fair to indicate your source.
I'm happy to see afmb.bike begins to be known in the States and we are happy to share few extracts from the articles dedicated to our members (free registration).
But for large extracts as you did please next time make a request to afmb.bike@gmail.com to get our agreement, this is a fair way to do.

I take this opportunity to encourage all of you to join the 13500 members of afmb.bike where you'll find free strong informations about recalls, technical actions, many articles about technology, security, ... No forum as we don't want to compete with forums as yours.
You can read more details on this thread : https://forums.bmwmoa.org/showthread.php?103131-popi-from-afmb-bike

popi said:

Hi RadioFlyer,
In your posts 09-28-2022, 08:26 PM and 09-13-2022, 09:09 PM you published large extracts and pictures from this article with copyright :
https://afmb.bike/en/
It would be fair to indicate your source.
I'm happy to see afmb.bike begins to be known in the States and we are happy to share few extracts from the articles dedicated to our members (free registration).
But for large extracts as you did please next time make a request to afmb.bike@gmail.com to get our agreement, this is a fair way to do.

I take this opportunity to encourage all of you to join the 13500 members of afmb.bike where you'll find free strong informations about recalls, technical actions, many articles about technology, security, ... No forum as we don't want to compete with forums as yours.
You can read more details on this thread : https://forums.bmwmoa.org/showthread.php?103131-popi-from-afmb-bike

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I read that the photos were those of an ADVRider inmate used without his knowledge by afmb. Is this the case?

In Canada copyright material is subject to a "fair dealing" exception for enumerated uses including education.

Sent from my SM-T813 using Tapatalk

RadioFlyer said:

I read that the photos were those of an ADVRider inmate used without his knowledge by afmb. Is this the case?

In Canada copyright material is subject to a "fair dealing" exception for enumerated uses including education.

Sent from my SM-T813 using Tapatalk

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Sure, but it is common courtesy, and no big burden, to at least provide credit for the source.

PGlaves said:

Sure, but it is common courtesy, and no big burden, to at least provide credit for the source.

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Well that's the issue. Who is the source? Certainly BMW is the source for the instructions that's obvious. But the photos?

In my post of 09-28-2022 I cited AMFB as the source although a list of affected models can hardly be considered as intellectual property.

The photos in my post of 09-13-2022 have been claimed to those of an ADVRider inmate used without his knowledge.

The AMFB does not cite a credit for the photos in its article. If in fact they are those of an ADVRider inmate used without his knowledge then again AMFB can hardly claim them as intellectual property subject to copyright - thus my question in post #70.

Sent from my SM-G950W using Tapatalk

RadioFlyer said:

Well that's the issue. Who is the source? Certainly BMW is the source for the instructions that's obvious. But the photos?

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It appears that you used them in your ADV post. Where did you get the photos?

20774 said:

It appears that you used them in your ADV post. Where did you get the photos?

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See my edited response to Paul above.

Respectfully, your question steps outside of your jurisdiction here.

RadioFlyer said:

See my edited response to Paul above.

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I don't see where you even give reference to the ADV poster. I'm not going to look through 21 pages for that.

My experience has been the same as tmwilmotte. I took my R1250GS for a service and the dealership performed the test described and my bike failed too. It has about 9k miles, mostly dry, no water crossings. A new drive shaft is on order and I had to leave the bike at the dealership, so no ride home!

Canadian Service Bulletin?

Have any of my Canadian bretherin had the check done yet?
I've emailled two Toronto area dealers and asked if I can get a scheduled appointment for the issue and have not been able to get a reply from either (need to telephone them now).
I did mention to both dealers that I did not need any other service done (I do my own) - so maybe that's why they are ignoring me.
Or, maybe Canada hasn't started implementing the bulletin yet?

I had the front universal joint explode on my 2014 1200 GSW in Marietta Ohio last month.
This melted the clear coat and paint on my swing arm also.
I'm very fortunate the rear wheel didn't lock up on me while spirited riding on a secondary twisty road.

One of the Toronto area dealers "blew me off" to do the repair by telling me to bring bike in early in 2023.
They also told me that they did not have the tools or equipment to do the Carden service bulletin.

I called Wolf Mottorad in London On and service manager (Darren) had me send pictures to him.
He sent them to his BMW rep and replied the same day.
BMW was covering the cost of replacing the swing arm and drive shaft.

I have never had service done by them previous to this.
I had used Endras in Ajax until they closed.
Wolf Mottorad has and is doing the Carden service bulletin when bikes come in for service.
My new swing arm HAS the duckbill valve in it.

I think some dealers don't like doing warranty work. Probably have a smaller margin financially for them.

purm1200gs said:

I had the front universal joint explode on my 2014 1200 GSW in Marietta Ohio last month.
This melted the clear coat and paint on my swing arm also.
I'm very fortunate the rear wheel didn't lock up on me while spirited riding on a secondary twisty road.

One of the Toronto area dealers "blew me off" to do the repair by telling me to bring bike in early in 2023.
They also told me that they did not have the tools or equipment to do the Carden service bulletin.

I called Wolf Mottorad in London On and service manager (Darren) had me send pictures to him.
He sent them to his BMW rep and replied the same day.
BMW was covering the cost of replacing the swing arm and drive shaft.

I have never had service done by them previous to this.
I had used Endras in Ajax until they closed.
Wolf Mottorad has and is doing the Carden service bulletin when bikes come in for service.
My new swing arm HAS the duckbill valve in it.

I think some dealers don't like doing warranty work. Probably have a smaller margin financially for them.

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Having a “strong” dealer that can be relied on is a great thing!

When I find a service department or even a sales associate providing great service, I let “upper” management/owner(s) know. Sometimes this involves sending a gift or gift card that will buy the department lunch.

OM

purm1200gs said:

I had the front universal joint explode on my 2014 1200 GSW in Marietta Ohio last month.
This melted the clear coat and paint on my swing arm also.
I'm very fortunate the rear wheel didn't lock up on me while spirited riding on a secondary twisty road.

One of the Toronto area dealers "blew me off" to do the repair by telling me to bring bike in early in 2023.
They also told me that they did not have the tools or equipment to do the Carden service bulletin.

I called Wolf Mottorad in London On and service manager (Darren) had me send pictures to him.
He sent them to his BMW rep and replied the same day.
BMW was covering the cost of replacing the swing arm and drive shaft.

I have never had service done by them previous to this.
I had used Endras in Ajax until they closed.
Wolf Mottorad has and is doing the Carden service bulletin when bikes come in for service.
My new swing arm HAS the duckbill valve in it.

I think some dealers don't like doing warranty work. Probably have a smaller margin financially for them.

Click to expand...

I think you just found your new dealer...